The Holy Beasts Legend
by Moon Dahee
Summary: 1000 years has passed, but now the legend is about to be awaken to fulfill Voldemort's ultimate plan. After the last events, something threatens the peace of the wizarding world. Come on, Harry & Company! It's time for a new adventure!
1. She still heard the chanting words

**Disclaimer: The world of Harry Potter belongs to the ****wonderful J. K. Rowling.**

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><p><strong>~*~The Holy Beasts Legend~*~<strong>

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><p><strong>Chapter One<strong>

**She still heard the chanting word****s in her head**

_Shouts, cries __and explosions. Sudden colored lights on the pitch dark sky. The moon was hidden behind the grey smoke which rose from the battle. The castle was being consumed by the fire and it was visible even from deep inside the Forbidden Forest. A woman hidden in a black cloak from head to toe was the only one who wasn't paying attention to the scene in front of her even if the scene was of utmost importance. Instead, she was watching at the castle with a concerned look on her face. Her son was there. Her little baby was there and she couldn't do anything. It was her and her husband's fault he had to live through all of this. She felt as guilty and worried as never before. Her heart thumped madly inside her chest and her eyes were holding back tears of despair. She could do nothing to help him. Nothing. _

"_The boy… is he dead?__," she heard the Dark Lord's cold voice asking._

_Her attention returned to what was happening in the middle of the circle formed by the Death Eaters. Harry Potter was lying on the floor, immobile, and the Death Eaters were all silent. She didn't dare to look at Voldemort at first, but then her eyes felt inevitably upon his. She noticed with a fright that he was looking right at her, his eyes redder and his pupils thinner than usual. He suddenly pointed at her with a long skinny finger. _

"_You." A small shriek came out of her mouth. "Examine him. Tell me whether he is dead."_

_Breathing heavily, she came forward, all her body shaking in fear. She crouched on the ground and looked at the boy for a moment. __She was closed enough to hear him trying to calm down his own breathing. He was obviously alive. He reminded her of her son. They were the same age and both had been through more hardships than they could handle. They both were in danger right now too. She was no longer seeing Harry Potter, the boy who live and the enemy of her Lord, but a young man with a difficult life. Just as her son. She had to do something to help him. She had to save time. She touched his scratched and dirty face with a gentle hand and pulled back an eyelid. She put her hand under his shirt and over his heart. It was thumping as fast as it could, full of life. Maybe her son was also fine. She leaned over Harry even more and let her long blond hair fall to hid them as she whispered so quietly she feared he wouldn't hear._

"_Is Draco alive? Is he in the castle?"_

_But, right after making the question, she felt something changed all of a sudden. Something didn't fit in the picture. She felt Harry's heartbeat slowing down until it didn't beat anymore. She felt his body growing colder under her hand and she saw his face got even paler than it was already. _Something's wrong_, she told herself. That wasn't what was supposed to happen. Somehow she knew the entire time what was next as if she had already lived that. Somehow she knew Potter should had told her Draco was fine by now so that she could lie to the Dark Lord by saying Harry Potter was dead. But what she was expecting didn't happen. Harry Potter was really dead in fact. _

_She __lifted her head and looked around for her comrades and Voldemort, but was surprised by a sudden darkness. She wasn't in the forest anymore. She was nowhere and she was alone, for there weren't any other Death Eaters and Voldemort had disappeared. In fact there was nothing else there except for her and the dead boy. She looked back at him to find him sitting down with his legs crossed in front of her. _What the…?, _she thought. He was gazing directly at her, but something was off with him. Something was different from the Harry Potter from before. _

"_Weren't you dead?" He kept gazing at her, but said nothing. "Do you know what's happening? Is Draco all right?"_

_Harry leaned his head and smiled, but it didn't make her feel at ease. It was a terrifying smile that didn't reach his evil looking eyes. She shuddered._

"_I killed him… Or did you I wonder?__," he answered with a sighing voice._

_She was startled. She couldn't believe her ears._

"_You… I… killed him? He's… dead?" she asked, unable to think straight._

"_Look for yourself," he answered, pointing __at the ground where his body had been just minutes ago._

_Now her eyes widen in shock at the horrible vision that had appeared of thin air. She gasped as her tears started to fall down her rosy cheeks. _

"_NO!," she shouted._

_Her son__ was lying in front of her. He was all covered in blood that kept flooding out of several open wounds. His grey eyes were wide open and his lips were slightly parted. He wasn't moving at all, lifeless. She launched her arms around him, whispering and sobbing in his ear. She was now covered in blood too._

"_No, my love… It can't be… DO SOMETHING, POTTER!" She shouted angrily at Harry, but when she looked back at him she suddenly realized what was off with him. She gasped in horror. That wasn't Harry Potter. She could see it clearly now. That person before her had bloody red eyes, thin pupils and snake-like nostrils. His smile showed some pointy teeth and she managed to see a forked tongue between them. She started to feel dizzy as the man burst out laughing insanely. She felt her head hitting the ground, her ears ringing…_

Narcissa's eyes snapped open and found herself looking at the ceiling of her canopy bed. She was out of breath and sweating. She straightened up on her bed and tried to steady her breathing by taking long deep breaths. She put her hand over her heart. It was beating so fast that it hurt. She had a lump in her throat and her eyes stung. She felt the urge to cry and this time she allowed herself to do so. Tears ran down her face as she started to sob in a mix of sadness, anxiety and melancholy. She hugged her legs and hid her face between her arms.

She knew it soon would be over though. Having such nightmares wasn't something new for her. She always dreamed about the battle at Hogwarts and the fear of losing her son. The set up wasn't always the same though. It didn't have to be the time when she lied to save Potter in particular. Even so, the end of the nightmares always ended with Voldemort saying Draco was dead. And that was something she didn't want to see. Even if it was only a dream.

She gave a big sob and lifted her head, eyes, cheeks and nose red from crying. She looked around the dark room. Everything was perfectly decorated in an old rococo style in green, silver and black colours. The furniture was just magnificent and classy; and it only got better as time passed. Not in vane it was one of the top fanciest houses, or rather manors, of the wizarding world.

Her eyes stopped on the portrait on the bedside table: a man with a stern scowl was looking at a younger Narcissa while she was trying to make a seven year old boy look at the camera. Lucius had never been the lovely kind of husband. Instead, he was really strict, dominant and proud. She was the same though, but maybe a bit softer. She wasn't sure if they still really love each other. Even so, they cared for each other and were used to live together to the extent she always felt lonely in her king sized bed now he wasn't there anymore. She then looked at Draco and smile sadly. He already had that almighty attitude of his when he was little. He had grown up in such a fine man and she was really proud of him.

She missed them both, but while she still could go to see Lucius in Azkaban once a month, she couldn't see Draco anymore. He had gone far away after the war ended and now it had been five years since the last time she saw him. She really, really wanted to see him. _He is twenty-two now_, she thought. _I wonder how he looks like, what he does, if he is ok… _She started to sob out loud again. It was her fault he had gone away. If only she had protected him. If only she had send him away at the right time he wouldn't had felt the need of disappearing from the wizarding world of England, where nobody wanted him.

Narcissa got up of the bed and approached her dark wooden desk. She picked up a parchment and a quill and started to write a letter. Her hand was shaking and a few tears fell on the paper helplessly, but she kept writing, trying to convey what she wanted to say.

When she was done, she went out of the room and walked through the dark corridors of the manor. She heard the people on the paintings snoring and mumbling in their dreams. She arrived at the owlery in one of the higher places in the manor. Normally, she would have asked a house-elf to send it for her, but she needed to have a little walk. Some owls where sleeping in a ball; some turned to her expectantly. Narcissa picked a brown one and tied the letter to his foot. The owl spread his wings proudly and went out of the owlery through a wide open window. Narcissa reached the window too and leaned against the window frame. She watched as the owl disappeared into the night, wondering where the animal would go. She could see also the big beautiful garden and some lights far ahead of the Malfoy Manor. She felt the fresh air on her face and the wind moved her long blond hair. She felt a bit better after writing to him.

She then turned around and started to go downstairs again. She had almost arrived at her room when something made her froze in shock. She had heard weird noises coming from his husband's study. She approached the door and put her ear against the dark thick wooden door. Some muffled voices reached her ears.

"… I can't find it…" Narcissa's heart raced. He had heard that voice before, but she couldn't remember who he was.

Silence. More weird noises.

"Do you really think it is here?," someone asked. His voice was a bit high-pitched, but surprisingly manly.

"That's what my Lord said."

_His Lord? __Did he mean…?,_ Narcissa's thoughts trailed off.

"Maybe your brother would have proved to be more useful than you are," he said, as if he regretted coming with him.

"Oh, so you are _so_ useful, right?," he answered, a bit annoyed.

"We are here thanks to me, remember? Your little wizard's powers alone wouldn't have work."

"Oh, well, you wouldn't be here at all without us, you know?"

The other person snorted.

"You are just a few of… how do you call yourselves? Oh, yeah, Death Eaters. Such a weird name."

Narcissa's eyes widen and her knees started to tremble. Death Eaters?

"We are not just a few. We have a good number, considering the situation, you know?" The other person was about to reply, but he was interrupted, "Wait… I think I know where it is."

The rustle of papers stopped.

"Really?"

"Yeah, inside the Malfoy's secret chamber."

_T__he secret chamber?_, Narcissa wondered, surprised. She hadn't been there once.

"That's sounds like a good place to hide something. Let's-"

"We can't," he cut him off in the middle of his speech. "Only those who have Malfoy's blood running through their veins can open it. And I don't even know where it is…"

"That's a problem. Well, the book is not really that important. We do have to find the other thing, though."

_A book?_, Narcissa thought. _And what was 'the other thing'?_

"Do you think it's also inside the chamber?"

"Why should I know, Lestrange?"

Narcissa gasped at the sound of that name. Her knee faltered as she knocked the door with it. She froze.

"Who is there?" Both asked, surprised.

In a fraction of a second, the door slammed open and she didn't even have the time to think about escaping away.

The room was all a mess. Papers and books were all over the place. Both men were covered by cloaks, but Narcissa knew for sure now that the shortest one of them was her brother-in-law. He was pointing at her with his wand, but he lowered it.

"My, my, Narcissa. How have you been?" he asked.

She raised her chin, trying to appear confident. Why hadn't she taken her wand before getting into this mess? Oh, right. She was under house arrest. She wasn't allowed to use magic.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were dead."

"No, no. I was just missing," he said, dismissively. "I disappeared of the battle when our Lord died."

Narcissa scowled at him, but she was shaking in fear.

"What do you want?" she asked, crossing her arms.

For her surprise it was the other man the one who answered, his tall and thin figure approaching her.

"You are wearing it," he had a delicate voice and a strange accent.

Narcissa blinked, confused, and let her arms fall at her sides.

"What are you talking about? What do you want?"

"I've said it. You are wearing it." The man took some more steps towards her and reached out his arm. "Give it to me."

Narcissa stepped back, scared. How could she defend herself without a wand?

"I don't know what you mean!," she exclaimed, out of fear. "Tweny! Tweny!," she called for her house-elf, but she didn't appear.

"She won't come. She doesn't obey you anymore. Now, give it to me. The Ring of the Green Priest."

Narcissa touched her fingers instinctively. She was certainly wearing a ring, but…

"You must be mistaken. This is my wedding ring."

"Her wedding ring?" Lestrange asked him, shocked. "Is that the one?" The other man nodded. "I wouldn't have imagined it."

"It doesn't belong to you, you know?" the tall man said to Narcissa.

She felt suddenly outraged.

"That's not true! It's been in my husband's family since…"

"Enough!," he shouted angrily all of a sudden, and Narcissa stopped talking immediately. "I don't have time for this crap."

He raised his slender right arm towards Narcissa and she noticed he didn't have a wand. Even so, she stepped back again, but she didn't dare to run away. Or maybe her body was frozen with fear.

"No, wait… please. I-I don't know what this is all about… I…"

"I don't care."

He started to move his hand in circles while chanting something in a language Narcissa didn't recognize. Her mind got blurrier and her body grew heavier as she listened to his mutter words. She felt sleepy. She fought against her eyelids, trying not to close her eyes.

"What… are… you… do-doing?," she said, gasping. She couldn't talk properly.

"I wanted to ask the same question," Lestrange said, impassive. What was happening in front of him didn't bother him.

"Just killing two birds with one stone."

Narcissa's breathing got irregular and her heart rate slowed down. She suddenly realized she was on her knees and couldn't help falling all the way down on the black cold floor. Her legs couldn't support her weight. She closed her eyes, unable to keep them open any longer, but she still could hear his mutter words. She noticed someone taking her ring off of her finger, but she couldn't defend herself.

Suddenly, she heard a popping sound followed by a huge explosion. Narcissa felt the heat wave for an instant and then she forced herself to open her eyes. The tremendous sound of the explosion had cleared her mind a bit, but she still was sleepy and weak. She looked around, her sight starting to get blurry already. The two men were gone. She saw Tweny at her side. She was dead. Narcissa felt a sharp pain in her chest, but she didn't have time to mourn the death of her dearly house-elf. She still heard the chanting words in her head. She didn't know what he had done to her, but she knew she was about to collapse. Or maybe die? Luckily, there was a quill lying on the floor near her. Thank goodness they left the room in a mess. She reached for it, her arm heavier than ever, but she still managed to take it. She started to write blindly, her vision completely blurred now. She wouldn't make it. She wouldn't write everything she wanted. She felt her head touching the cold floor as she fell into unconsciousness.

However, she still had time to write two words.

**oO0OoO0Oo0O0o~**

Harry Potter exited out of the lift at the Department of Law Enforcement's floor. He greeted a few people and went straight to the Aurors Office. There was nobody there. He frowned. It was a bit strange since it was already 10 in the morning. In fact, today he was late. He kept walking through the desks full of papers and stopped in front of his private office. There was a plaque on the door that read:

_Harry Potter_

_Head__ Of Aurors_

He looked at the plaque a bit wary. It had been a year since he had been promoted and still he didn't quite believe it. He felt heavy having such a great responsibility and got easily surprised by how people followed his orders without thinking twice. Even people who weren't under his orders listened to what he had to say. He was certainly a respected figure in the wizarding world. But he truly liked his job anyway. In essence, he was the same Harry Potter as always. Sure, he was a bit more mature and wiser, but still the same. He looked older too, but it fitted him. He looked more handsome than before.

He put his hand on the handle and was about to turn it when someone opened the door front the inside. Harry's hand slip down and he found himself right in front of Theodore Nott. Theodore Nott looked surprised as well, but he soon recovered and started to talk in a rush:

"Merlin! You are here at last! We've been trying to contact you since a few hours ago! Where have you been?"

"Er… I was… busy." He blushed a bit. He didn't need to explain further.

"Whatever. Something has happened. Narcissa Malfoy was attacked early this morning."

"What?," he asked, flabbergasted. "Narcissa Malfoy?"

"That's right!"

"Then we should go there immediately, right?," Harry said, ready to leave, but Theo stopped him.

"The aurors are almost done by now. And besides, Ron is in charge, so the investigation will go smoothly."

Harry thought for a moment and sighed. He probably was right. It wasn't that he didn't trust Ron. Far from that. He just liked to be where the action took place so he would be useful.

"Well, tell me the rest of it? Is she ok?," he asked, concerned.

"Well, she is not dead at least. But I don't really know because the healers were still working on her when I came back."

Harry nodded, still worried about the woman who had saved him at the battle of Hogwarts. She seemed to be alive at least. He finally entered his office and sat down on his chair. He invited Teo to enter as well.

"Tell me everything."

Theo sat in front of him. He had dark shadows under his vivid black eyes and his black hair was unkempt.

"Well, about 4 o'clock in the morning we received an urgent message saying the guardian spells we had put at Malfoy Manor had fallen. The aurors on night duty tried to contact you immediately by the floo net, but since yours was closed, they called Ron and owled you before leaving. He sent me back here an hour ago to wait for you since you hadn't answered."

Harry suddenly felt guilty for neglecting his responsibilities. At 4 o'clock he was still with Ginny and then he overslept. No wonder why they couldn't contact him. He probably didn't notice the owl because he had been too distracted for that and he had also closed his floo net. He never did that kind of thing during the week because he had to work. But yesterday it just… happened.

"I'm sorry about that." Teo just nodded and Harry continued. "How can that be? Narcissa Malfoy is still under house arrest. Weren't our guards supposed to be 100% effective?," he asked, stunned.

"Well, you know about house-elves' magic being different from ours, right?"

"Yeah…" he wondered where the conversation was heading. He suddenly remembered Hermione and her thing for house-elves.

"We believe it was her house-elf's magic that made our guards fall."

Harry blinked, confuse.

"Why is that?."

"We found a house-elf lying next to Narcissa's unconscious body. She was dead. She didn't have any wounds so it's more likely she exhausted herself to death while trying to protect her Mistress from whoever attacked them. The corridor in front of them was burned as if it had exploded or something like that. Probably due to the house-elf's magic."

Harry felt sad for the house-elf. She reminded him of Dobby, who also had died to save him. Something always pained in his chest when he remembered his little friend. To tell the truth, he also admired house-elves.

"What about the attacker?," he asked then.

"We don't know much for now. But if the investigation really proved the guards fall because of the house-elf, then that'd mean the attacker managed to come into the property without being noticed. And that's not good." Harry nodded and passed his hand through his hair, thoughtful.

Then the door opened and Ron was standing under the frame. He looked tired. He also had rings under his eyes and his hair was messy, but he smiled when he saw his friend. Ron stepped out of the frame for a moment and said to the three other aurors who had come with him:

"Harry is here. Can you three start with the paper work, please?" He waited for a response and then turned to Harry. "Where were you?," he asked, closing the door behind him and taking a seat.

"Sorry, mate," he said. He couldn't tell him the true, obviously. "Well, is the investigation finished?"

"Almost. And I'm dead tired," he sighed. "I trust Nott tell you what he knew, right?"

"Yes," Teo answered. "I may have forgotten something, though."

"Well, I'll tell you the last things we've learnt."

"Ok. But, first, how is Mrs. Malfoy's condition?" Harry demanded.

Ron looked at him knowingly. He could understand his concerned, although neither of them was fond of the Malfoy family.

"She isn't hurt; she has no wounds, but the healers weren't able to wake her up. She seems to be sort of asleep. More like when an animal hibernate. Her vitals are at its minimum. Though the healers agree that whichever the spell was, it could have killed her. In fact, it was closed, but she survived thanks to her house-elf."

"So it's been proved it was her house-elf the one who made our guards fall while trying to protect her?"

"Yes," Ron answered without a doubt. "The healers also examined the house-elf. She did give away all her energy in a big outburst of elfish magic. It must have been quite a big explosion."

Harry felt again that pain in his chest. He only needed to look at Ron in the eye once to know his friend also felt it.

"And the attacker?"

"About that…" Ron said, anxious. "It seems he was looking for some kind of documents, for the study is in a mess. Papers and books are everywhere. We need someone to check if there is something missing."

Harry nodded.

"And what about the other house-elves? Did you question them?" Harry was sure the Malfoy family had more than one elf.

"Didn't you tell him?" Ron asked, glancing at Theo.

"Oh," Teo said. "See? I forgot about that, sorry." Harry looked at him, inquiring. "The thing is, there weren't other house-elves when we arrived."

"What?" Now Harry was in shock. He hadn't asked until then because he thought Teo was sent back too early to know about the questioning.

"Yes, they weren't at home. They probably ran away or something." Ron confirmed.

"Can house-elves do that? I mean, wouldn't it be like disobeying their Mistress?" Teo wondered.

"Well, Dobby actually did disobey his Master a few times, so it's possible" Harry offered. Teo looked at him, lost. "Dobby was a house-elf I knew, but he died," he explained.

"Oh, I'm sorry," he apologized, feeling uncomfortable. "It's still strange."

Harry looked at them and sighed.

"You two need a break."

Theo nodded.

"But before that, we need to contact Narcissa's relatives," he reminded them.

"I was thinking about that too," Harry admitted.

"Well, since Lucius Malfoy is in Azakaban and Malfoy is nowhere to be found, I don't know who we can contact," Ron said, a bit bitterly when he mentioned his childhood enemy's and his father's names.

"That's right." Harry agreed. He handled Narcissa's case personally so he knew well her circumstances. "For the time being, I think I'll ask Andromeda to take care of her sister." Harry decided. "I believe she'll agree even if they aren't in good terms. And, anyway, we will need to contact Malfoy and his father. We need to question them in case they know something that could help. We need someone who can confirm nothing was stolen too and since Lucius Malfoy is in Azkaban now, it's a bit complicated to take him out of prison even if it's for an investigation. The procedure is too long. Also, Blaise Zabini has been helping Mrs Malfoy to handle the family business so he'll be useful too."

"So it's settled." Theo said, happily.

"Not until I send them the notices," Harry said. "I'll go right now. You can take a rest. We'll be meeting this evening to discuss this further"

"Yes," both aurors said.

Harry nodded and disappeared through the door.

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><p>Welcome to my new fic. What do you think? Is it good? I want the story to be a good one with a well developed plot. I'm still at it, though. I'm really afraid I won't be able to handle it, but I want to try my best, so, please, support me! That means, please, leave a review! That always cheers me up! n.n<p>

Oh, yeah. If you see any weird mistakes, that's probably because I'm not English. I'm Spanish. So if you see any mistake, please, tell me. I'll change it right away. Maybe you even think a really need a beta? Well, just tell me, too.

I've already written two more chapters, but I still want to take a look at them before uploading them. I also want to see what you think of this first chapter first.

Oh, about the name of the fic... I'm not sure about it. Does it sound good? Do you have any sugestions? Guess it's too early for that, though.

So, see ya!

*+*+Zakuro Pure*+*+


	2. Death Eaters', he answered

**Disclaimer: t****he world of Harry Potter belongs to the amazing J. K. Rowling.**

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><p><strong>Chapter <strong>**Two**

**"'Death Eaters'," he answered**

Draco opened his grey eyes, and frowned immediately. It was too bright. He blinked twice to get used to the light and then he stretched his arms. He straightened up and the blanket slipped down his bare chest. He wasn't that build, but he wasn't skinny either. He just had the right amount of muscles. He passed his hand through his messy hair and looked at the girl beside him. She was sleeping. She had blond silky hair and a model body. Maybe she was, in fact, a model. He didn't remember. He didn't even remember her name. He didn't care. What was she still doing here?

The girl suddenly turned to him. Her blue eyes looked up at him with a dreamy smile.

"_Bonjour_."

Draco rolled his eyes and snorted. Girls were all the same.

"Don't get comfortable. Get out of here."

She was shocked by the harsh words.

"_Quoi_? After what 'appened yesterday… Zat eez rude!"

"Whatever. Get out."

She looked hurt, but she got out of the bed and started to get dressed, her clothes all over the floor.

"Fine," she said, lifting her head proudly. "Fine." She started to walk towards the door, but then she turned around and looked at him with pleading eyes. "Will you owled mee?"

Draco didn't have to think to answer that.

"No," he said, flatly.

She sobbed once and then stormed out of the flat.

Draco sighed. Girls were getting boring lately. He stepped out of bed, wearing his grey pajama bottoms. He was about to enter the bathroom to have a shower when a tapping sound dragged his attention. He looked at the window and saw a brown owl watching at him expectantly. He walked to the window and opened it. The owl came in and landed on his bed.

"What do you have there?" he asked, untying the letter from his foot. He read the address.

_To Mr__. Draco Malfoy._

Draco recornised his mother's handwriting and the Malfoy's seal. He opened it as a sick-home feeling spread through his veins. He took a quick glance to what was written. It was all blotchy. Her mother surely had been crying while writing it. The handwriting was messy, as if her hand had been shaking too. He felt a pang of guilty and sadness in his chest as he read:

_My dear son Draco,_

_I keep wondering why we hardly ever write to each other.__ But the reason I'm writing to you right now is that I miss you so much. It's been five years since we haven't seen each other and I don't really know how you are doing. I thought you would come to see me when I got out of Azkaban, but I'm still waiting. At least, I know you are alive somewhere._

_I know I wasn't a good mother. I should have protected you. I should have done what was best for you. Instead, I was selfish and dragged you along with me for my own safety. Because I was too scared__ to do nothing. And when I wanted to do it, it was too late. Now you suffer the consequences. Our family suffers the consequences of what we have done. It is just cruelly fair. I just hope you'll forgive me someday, even though I know I will always feel this way._

_I'm fine, although things are a bit boring since I'm under house arrest. I'm just grateful Blaise is here. He keeps me company and helps me with the Malfoy's business. Sometimes, Pansy also visits me and I really enjoy girl talking with her. She's a nice girl. _

_Please, come back soon._

_Love,_

_Narcissa_

Draco closed his grips tightly, squeezing the paper as guilty rushed through him. Veins and tendons popped out under his pale skin. He stared at his left forearm, where the dark mark was clear as day, a black snake coming out of the mouth of a black skull outstanding out from his white skin. It was an eternal reminder of his own decisions, of his mistakes. What was his mother talking about, then? She always said those kinds of things as if it was _her_ fault. It wasn't. It was _his_ fault. His parents were already too involved with the Dark Lord to find a way out for Draco. Therefore, they only did what they could do at the time: to be near Draco in case he needed help. Draco was the one who should have refused to get involved. He was already an adult and he was mature enough for that. But he was too scared to go against the Dark Lord's whishes. He was too scared to step aside of his parents' protection and help them. And, at the same time, he cared too much for his parents to even think about leaving them behind. Changing sides wasn't an option either. It would have been too dangerous without Dumbledore to protect them. And besides, the other side was against his family's ideology, so he wasn't sure if his parents would have accepted their help.

He sighed. He didn't want her mother to keep blaming herself and he didn't want her to believe he blamed her either. Every time she said something like that, he felt like rushing to London to tell her so. However, he never did. He was too ashamed of himself for not doing anything to protect her. He was too ashamed for running away and leaving her alone when she needed him the most. He was ashamed for not going to see her when she went out of Azkaban. In short, he was ashamed for avoiding her for five years.

And besides, he wasn't sure if he was ready to face the magic society. He wouldn't be welcomed for sure. There were people who still thought he should have gone to Azkaban. He hated to say it, but it was thanks to Potter that he didn't have to go to the wizarding prison. He owed him that and he hated it. He hated him for making him owe him something. And not only that. Potter had helped to reduce her mother's sentence. Draco was grateful for that one, though. But he still hated the fact that it was Potter.

He squeezed the letter tighter in his hand and growled in frustration. Then he turned again to the window, for he heard the flapping of wings. There was another grey owl on the frame, looking rather professional. _Today's mail day, it seems_, he thought. He approached the owl and, as soon as he took the letter, the owl flew out of the window. He looked at the envelope and frowned. It had the seal of the Ministry of Magic along with his full address. He opened it.

_Dear Mr Malfoy,_

_I regret to inform you that your m__other, Narcissa Malfoy, has been hospitalized due to an attack on 28__th__ June 2002 at her home around four in the morning. You are summoned to attend at the Ministry of Magic on 5__th__ July 2002 and you are to remain in London until you are not required to cooperate with the investigation. If you do not comply with this summons you will be liable, in county court, to a fine._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Harry Potter, Head of Aurors_

_Aurors Office, Department of Law Enforcement_

_Ministry of Magic_

Draco stared at the paper, reading the same line again and again as he felt his heart thumping loudly. _Your mother, Narcissa Malfoy, has been hospitalized due to an attack_. He couldn't believe what he was reading! An attack? How could that be? Hadn't he been reading a letter from his mother a moment ago? She said she was fine! As the news sank in his mind slowly, he started to feel overwhelmed by worry. Was she ok? He had to know! Why didn't the damn letter say anything about that? Why? He threw the paper furiously on the floor and sat down on his bed, angry. He passed his hands through his hair with anxiety. He rested his elbows on his knees and then his forehead on the palms of his hands.

"I'm sorry, mother," he whispered. "Again, I couldn't do anything for you," he said as he leaned back on the bed.

**~oO0OoO0OoO0Oo~**

Harry Potter sat at his desk again as he thought about his new case. Five days had passed since the attack. Narcissa Malfoy was still unconscious and it didn't seem there would be a recover anytime soon. Healers still didn't know the exact cause of her condition. They agreed it was some kind of unknown spell, though. Harry thought it was too weird. Or too 'unknown'. An _unknown_ person broke into the Malfoy Mannor by an _unknown_ method for _unknown_ reasons and cast an _unknown_ spell on Narcissa. He was frustrated. He couldn't think of something useful. He had send Ron to investigate Lucius' study one more time in case they overlooked something the first time. They _had_ overlooked something.

It was the first case since they had started to work as aurors in which they were at a complete loss. Lucius Malfoy couldn't think of anyone in particular who might have attacked his wife, although there were certainly too much people who had a grudge against the Malfoys. But all of them were pretty normal people so Harry didn't think they could have broken in without being noticed by their guards. And Zabini had said no documents were stolen as far as he knew. He said he had checked every important document he could think of… agreements, contracts of sales and purchase, receipts… He had said everything was fine. He also had recornised the house-elf as Tweny, Narcissa's personal house-elf. Zabini didn't know much about her as people usually didn't know much about house-eleves, let alone someone else's house-elf. Now they had to wait for Malfoy to confirm that nothing else was stolen.

"If only Hermione were here she would have thought of something…," he said to himself.

She always had bright ideas, but she wasn't coming back until next week. His clever best friend was the Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, but right now she wasn't in London. She was holding a series of lectures on magical creatures' rights in the south of England. Since she had being promoted, she had been very busy trying to improve the magical creatures' situation. She even added a new division at her department called Magical Creatures' Rights Committee. She surely was having fun. She loved working.

Harry smiled as he remember the spew… well, S.P.E.W. To think it all started with that…

Suddenly, the door slam open and Theo entered in a rush.

"I have someth- !" he stopped and looked at him. "Why are you smiling?"

"Nothing, nothing. I just remember something," Harry said, shaking his head. "Why are you in such a rush?"

"Oh, right," he said apologetically. He was the kind of person who could get distracted easily with the slightest thing. "I think I have something," he said, looking anxious.

"Really? What is it?" Harry demanded, leaning on his desk.

"Well, two days ago I learnt Pansy Parkinson's father had passed away." Harry raised his eyebrows, surprised. He didn't know. "I went to his funeral this morning since I knew him because I was a childhood friend of hers. I got to talk to her and she told me he had died while sleeping. 'A peaceful dead,' she said. She told me the healers really didn't know the cause of his death. At the end they said he died a natural dead. I wouldn't have suspected there was something fishy if she hadn't complained that, to top it all, she was having problems at home because all of their house-elves had disappeared since her father died."

"What?" Harry exclaimed. "It really is suspicious."

"It's the same as in Mrs. Malfoy's case," Theo agreed. "Let alone, it's not a normal behavior for house-elves."

Harry suddenly stood up.

"I'm going to check something," he said, as he stormed out of the office.

Theo froze for a moment, stunned, and then followed Harry through the Aurors Office and the rest of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement' offices. They stopped in front of the lift and waited along a lot of paper planes. They entered when the lift open and waited as it went down. Teo didn't dare to say anything as Harry seemed to be thinking hard.

"Level four, Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, incorporating Beast, Being and Spirits Divisions, Magical Creatures' Rights Committee, Goblin Liaison Office and Pest Advisory Bureau," the lift woman's voice announced.

Harry got off of the lift with Theo at his side. The two of them greeted some workers and Theo followed Harry straight to the Being Division Office. Theo wondered what he was thinking about.

"Good morning, Mr. Thompson," Harry said as soon as he saw the brown bearded man who was writing something on a form. He was in charge of the Being Division.

"Oh, Mr. Potter. Good morning. What can I do for you?" he asked.

"Well, I would like to know if you've been having problems with house-elves lately."

Mr. Thompson looked surprised.

"How did you know?"

Harry felt a triumphant feeling.

"Tell me about it." Mr. Thompson looked at him as if he wanted to ask why. "It's for an investigation," Harry added.

Mr. Thompson nodded and put down the quill as he searched for words.

"Well, it's not much, really. Since the beginning of the year there had been a lot of complaints about house-elves disappearing from their homes or even disobeying their Masters. It got worse during the last month."

"Isn't it something you should report to the Minister? It's not normal," Theo demanded.

"Well, we thought it _was_ normal due to Miss Granger's actions in favour of the magical creatures' rights," he explained, rolling his eyes at the thought of it.

"That's understandable," Harry agreed. "Besides, I can't picture Hermione doing the wrong thing. If she would have suspected something, she would just have reported it."

"Yeah, that's right," Theo nodded in agreement. "I think there is more into this than we think."

Mr. Thompson looked like he was trying to understand what was going on. Harry noticed the look Mr. Thompson was giving them and said:

"Thank you, Mr. Thompson. I think we will talk again later," he said as a goodbye.

Minutes later, Harry and Theo had already come back to the Auror Headquarters. They found Ron waiting for them inside Harry's office.

"You're back, Ron? Did you find something useful?" Harry asked, hopeful.

"In fact, I did." Ron's expression was more serious than he had expected.

Harry sat down and Theo leaned against the wall. They had a bad feeling.

"What is it? Why so serious?"

Ron looked at the two of them, searching for words.

"You were right, Harry. We did overlook something important. Narcissa Malfoy left us a clue. Before collapsing, I guess."

Harry and Theo were starting to get nervous.

"Come on, Ron! Say it already!" Theo urged him.

Ron nodded apologetically. It was kind of difficult to say it for him.

"She wrote something on the floor. It was written just where we found her. Her handwriting was so small and weak there is no wonder why we didn't see it the first time we searched."

Harry leaned towards him, uneasy, and Theo approached them to listen better since Ron kept lowering his tone.

"What did she wrote?" Harry demanded. For some strange reason, he murmured.

Ron paused and took a deep breath.

"'Death Eaters'," he answered.

Silence descended upon the room. Neither of them dared to talk for minutes as they tried to assimilate the news.

"Death Eaters?" Harry repeated, not quite believing his words.

Ron nodded, still very serious. It was an expression that didn't match his character.

"Do you think it is possible?" Ron crossed his arms, fearing the answer.

"But-but-" Theo stuttered. "Half of them are in Azkaban and I'm sure there hasn't been a jailbreak. And the other half are dead or…" Theo paused as he realized it. "Or missing." He murmured as if he were talking to himself.

"I guess it's possible," Harry stated. "No… I guess it's not just possible, but a fact. If Narcissa Malfoy wrote it down I believe we shouldn't take it lightly."

"Are you sure we can trust her? I mean… Maybe she wrote that for some strange plan?" Harry could see Ron didn't believe in his own words either. He just wanted to find a solution where Death Eaters weren't involved. Or maybe he just wanted to badmouth the Malfoys. Kind of a tipic childish reaction of his.

"Considering everything, I don't think that's the case," Harry answered.

"Of course not!" Theo intertwined. "Do you think she would have agreed willingly to fall into that comatose state?" he asked, ironic.

Ron looked at him and sighed.

"I guess not. Anyway, I didn't really mean it."

Teo frowned. It wasn't the time to say things without thinking.

"Do you think it has a hidden meaning?" Teo asked. "Maybe we shouldn't take it literally."

"And what could it possibly be?" Harry said, clearly not convinced. "Besides, I don't think she had time to even think about being cryptic about it. I think she was plain and straight."

Theo looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Yeah, I think you're right," Theo agreed a moment later, his last theory completely denied. Ron nodded in agreement as well.

"What do you think they want?," Ron said. "It's been five years now. And it took one year for people to stop seeing Death Eaters everywhere. Why are they coming out now?"

"No idea." Teo shrugged. "And, to top it all, everything we know until now is strange."

"Yeah. It doesn't seem to be a connection," Ron agreed. "What are you thinking, Harry?" Ron asked, as his best friend seemed to be deep in thought.

Harry blinked.

"Sorry. I was just thinking we need to inform Kingsley. Well, if there isn't anything else, I think we should start working." The two aurors nodded in agreement. "Nott, you go see if you can find out anything else about Mr. Parkinson's death. Ron, go to the Being Division and gather information about the house-elves' disappearances. Right before you returned from Malfoy Mannor, we learnt there have been some complaints lately." Both nodded again. "As for me, I'll owled Kinsley."

Theo and Ron went out of the office and Harry started to write.

* * *

><p>AN: Here it is chapter two! You know? At first I was going to cut off the chapter when Ron told them what Narcissa had written. Then I started to write the rest of their conversation for myself so I could picture it better, but then I just thought it'll be good for you to see it too. So I include it in the chapter.

Oh, and this is Draco's first appearance in the fic! So sexy (L)

So I hope I'm doing it well. What do you think? Please, leave a review and tell me n.n.

**Thanks to…**

**Luna-maga**: en inglés porque necesito practicar y porque es un reto n.n. ¡A lo mejor algún día lo traduzco y todo! Sería una experiencia nueva: traducirme a mí misma LOL. Aunque sea en inglés, espero que la sigas leyendo. Así tú también practicas n.n. Te mentiría si te digo que no tengo ganas de escribir un nuevo fic en español. Me apetece muchísimo, pero tengo éste y otras dos traducciones (y un fic en español también, pero no sé si lo continuaré porque no me motiva). Bueno, el caso es que es mucho trabajo -.-U. ¿Puede que cuando termine los exámenes empiece uno en español? Me estoy ilusionando. Mi cabeza quiere empezar a imaginar una nueva historia :D. ¿O quizás traducir esta no sea tan mala idea? Bueno, que ya estoy escribiendo mucho. Se nota que tenía ganas de hablar :). ¡Nos vemos!

***+*+Zakuro Pure*+*+**

**(K)Kisses&Hugs(L)**


	3. And he signed

**Disclaimer: the world of Harry Potter belongs to the ****fantastic J. K. Rowling.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Three<strong>

**And he signed**

Almost everything in San Mungo's hospital was white or green, and the smell of healing potions was everywhere. It made Draco remember his childhood. His mother always had to take his hand every time they went to see a healer, although his father didn't approve of such behavior. _You are a Malfoy!_, he always said. Now he was standing up beside a stretcher. His mother's stretcher. She looked paler than ever and she had shadows under her eyes. Despite that, her beautiful features were peaceful. Her eyes were softly closed, her lips touched slightly and her blond long hair was spread over the white sheets. Since he had grown up, he hadn't hugged her or kissed her. That wasn't supposed to be a Malfoyish behavior either. However, he felt the need to do so right now. He reached for her hand and caressed it. It was warm and soft, as it was always when he was a child.

"I'm sorry, mother," he said, his voice breaking. "If I had been there, this wouldn't have happened. I've failed you again."

He stared at her hand as if he were hoping she would move her fingers. He noticed a circle of even paler skin around one of them. Draco frowned. Where was her ring?

Then Draco heard the door opened and turned around to find Blaise standing at the doorframe, looking at him. Draco let go of her mother's hand and looked back at his friend. They stared at each other in recognition and understanding. It had been a long time since they saw each other, but it suddenly felt like if those years were nothing. It was as if they were never apart.

"The healers told me there was someone else here," Blaise smiled a wide smile. "So it's you."

"Nice to see you too," Draco said. He couldn't help it and smiled back. Although he wasn't feeling exactly cheerful, he was still happy to see his friend.

"What's up?" Blaise approached him and shook his hand; or rather he slapped it in a friendly way. "How are you doing?"

"Just fine," Draco answered, but it wasn't what he wanted to talk about right now. "Listen, Blaise. I'm sorry, but we will catch up later. I'm meeting Potter this evening." He made a face of disgust. "I meant to go to your place, but since you are here, please, tell me everything you know. What happened to my mother? And I already know what healers know, so you can skip that part."

Blaise nodded, understandingly.

"Well, I just know someone broke-in through the aurors magical guards without being noticed. That person attacked Narcissa, and Tweny died in order to save her." Draco nodded, feeling a sudden sympathy for the house-elf. "It seems they were interested in some documents because they left your father's study in a mess. But the aurors made me check the documents to see if there was something stolen. Everything was fine, though. I don't know if something else was stolen. I can't tell. Maybe they want you for that. And that's all I know. Not much, actually," he shrugged as if he were apologizing.

Draco nodded again as he thought about what Blaise had said. Then he looked again at his mother. She looked like she was sleeping peacefully. He felt the need to grab her hand again and he did. His chest pained guiltily and distressed. His eyes stung and his throat hurt. He didn't know if he wanted to cry sad tears or rage tears, but he wasn't about to allow himself to do so anyway.

Blaise looked away, feeling it was a private moment. He was wondering if he should leave Draco and his mother alone.

"Blaise," Draco called. "Where is my mother's ring? It is very important to her."

"Her ring?" Blaise looked at her hand. She wasn't wearing it as usual. In fact, Blaise didn't remember seeing it since she had been at the hospital. "I don't know. I guess the healers, or maybe the aurors, took it."

"What for?" He raised an eyebrow.

Blaise shrugged again, this time out of ignorance.

"I don't know. Comfort for the patient? For the sake of their investigation?"

Draco didn't say anything for a moment and then he asked:

"How was she?" he gulped, a lump forming in his stomach. "I mean, before this happened."

Blaise seemed to be looking for the right words as Draco looked around anxiously, not sure if he was ready to hear how bad his mother had been.

"Well, she was doing ok, actually." Draco looked at him, surprised. It wasn't what he was expecting. "She's a proud woman, so she always put on a cool face. At least, that's what she did when we met. Deep inside, though, I think she was not that strong. I know for sure she missed you a lot. At first she always tried to make me tell her where you were. I did as you asked and told her I didn't know. I think she never believed me." Blaise chuckled, sadly amused. But Draco wasn't amused at all. His face was dead serious. "Sometimes I did wonder if she had found out somehow that you were managing the Malfoy's business in France." Blaise must have felt Draco's uneasiness because he said, "By the way, did you know Pansy's father passed away?"

Draco nodded, relieved and disappointed at the same time for the sudden changed of subject. He was quite relieved his mother hadn't been doing that bad. On the outside, a least. He knew, just as Blaise did, that she wasn't as good as she wanted to pretend.

"Yeah, I'm sorry I couldn't come to the funeral. How is she?" he asked, accepting the changed of subject. Now he had learnt everything he could about the attack, he allowed himself to catch up with his best friend.

**~oO0OoO0OoO0Oo~**

Draco said goodbye to Blaise as he disappeared in the mist of the green flames of his friend's fireplace. Almost instantly, he arrived at the Ministry. It was crowded with people on business robes and cloaks, and a bunch of them came in and out of the fireplaces. Draco swept off some ashes of his grey cloak and strode towards the lift. Some heads turned to him as they recornised him and whispered. He gave them some cold glares and kept going his way.

He waited at the shaft a few seconds and then he got in. The lift went down one floor and then the female voice announced:

"Level two, Department of Magical Law Enforcement, including the Improper Use of Magic Office, Auror Headquarters and Wizengamot Administration Services."

He got off and started to walk towards the Auror Headquarters, still turning more workers' heads. None of them dared to speak to him. Even without the Dark Lord around, the Malfoy family still commanded respect. Draco wasn't sure if he liked it. It meant he had, at least, some amount of power, but it also meant that power came from fear. Again he wasn't sure if he liked it. Maybe he did. He was a Slytherin after all.

He arrived at a double wooden door with a plaque that read "Auror Headquarters" and entered. Before him, there was a big room where witches and wizards talked to each other while filling in some papers, though at least half of the desks where empty. It was emptier than the rest of the department floor in general. Maybe because the aurors had to work outside too. He observed the aurors. Some of them had actually such a scarred face that they reminded him of Moody, although no one in the room looked as bad as Moody did. Others hold rather scary expressions on their faces, as if they were expecting something bad to happen. But most of them looked just like normal people.

Draco stood there, not knowing what to do. He had been there before, but never alone. In fact, last time he had been surrounded by angry looking aurors. He snorted and shook his head. He didn't want to remember that.

Potter's office was probably behind that door across the room, but he wasn't sure if he could get in just like that. He was about to ask to one of the friendliest looking aurors he could see when one of them stood up from a near desk and approached him. He was a bit older than him and he looked at Draco suspiciously, but calm.

"You're Mr. Malfoy, right?" Draco nodded. "Mr. Potter is waiting for you. You may come in," he pointed to the office with a nailess finger and then went back to his seat.

Draco started to walk and soon he had approached Potter's office. He read the plaque on his door and felt a sudden need to mock it. Somewhere in his mind he went back on time and kind of wanted to ask: _Where are scar-face and the weasel when you need to mock them?_

He sighed and knocked.

"Come in!"

He opened the door and found two men looking directly at him as soon as they realized who he was. Harry Potter and Ron Weasley looked exactly the same as they did five years ago, although a bit older and mature. Potter had a kind of professional aura around him while Weasley seemed still childish, but not as innocent as before. Potter sat at a desk where papers were spread all over. His face was blank. Draco couldn't make out what he was thinking because Harry Potter was just staring back at him with a serious expression. Weasley was leaning against the desk and had his arms crossed. He was far easier to read than his friend. The redhead was just plain furious of seeing Draco again. He was glaring at him. Draco's trade smirk slipped to his lips. He couldn't help it.

"Potter, Weasley," he greeted.

"Malfoy," Potter acknowledged.

Ron just nodded, and the three of them kept glaring at each other. Draco wondered if it was really because they hated each other or just because they didn't know how to act after such a long time. He wasn't sure himself. He guessed both possibilities were right.

"Now, now…" someone suddenly said at his side. "Don't be so stiff, you three!"

Draco turned to his right. He hadn't noticed the man when he had entered. He was a bit short, like Potter, perhaps, and had smiling features. He was rather amused by the situation, although a bit worried too.

Harry sighed, relieved.

"You're right, Nott. Let's get over it quickly."

Draco blinked and observed the man more intensely.

"Nott?" he asked, his expression turning to a friendlier one. Theodore Nott?" Teo nodded, still amused by his expression. "My, I didn't recornise you at first! You're an auror now?"

"Yes," he said, proudly.

"I see. How have you…"

"Enough chit-chat," Ron cut off angrily.

Draco raised an annoyed eyebrow.

"My, Weasley, calm down, will you?"

Ron tightened his grip, but Harry stood up before he could do anything and said:

"First of all, thank you for coming, Malfoy. Please, take a seat," he waved towards the chair across him.

"As if I had another option," Draco said, giving Ron a smug look as he sat down.

Harry refrained to comment and said:

"First, you should know that, after some events, I talked to the Minister and now this is a confidential case." Draco looked surprised. Was the case that important? "This means I can't tell you everything-"

"What?" he snapped, cutting him off. "It's my mother we are talking about here, Potter! I have the right to know what's going on!" Draco suddenly got angry. Wouldn't that mean he couldn't do anything for his mother… _again_?

Harry was taken aback by Draco's sudden outburst.

"Let me finish first, Malfoy!" Harry raised an eyebrow.

Draco paused, surprised of himself. He usually didn't lose his control. A_m I that edgy?_, he wondered. Then he nodded.

"Stupid ferret…" he heard Ron muttering to himself. Draco glared at him, but he decided to overlook it for the sake of it.

"As I was saying, it's a confidential case now and I can't tell you everything if you are not working in it. Since I'm the one in charge of this case and you're Mrs. Malfoy's son, I've decided to let you choose. You can join us if you want."

Draco stared at him in disbelieve.

"What?" Ron said, perplexed. "But Harry, do you remember what we were talking about?"

Harry ignored Ron.

"You're her son and you deserve to know. But it's not only that. I believe you may come in handy, but I don't think you will be willing to help us if you don't know everything. Am I right, Malfoy?"

Draco grinned, wondering how on Earth he could come in handy for him.

"You are damn right, Potter."

"But I have to warn you. I don't know how this situation may become. It could be dangerous. Do you think you can handle it?"

Dangerous? Draco Malfoy wasn't exactly the height of bravery, but it was for his mother's sake, right? He couldn't step aside as he did last time. He didn't want to repeat the same mistakes. This time he had to do something for her. He remembered her face at the hospital, her peaceful and beautiful, yet motionless features. He remembered the guilty and the shame he felt every time for not doing the right thing at the right time. He felt the same pain in his chest as always.

He got himself together and put on a cool face. Besides, the challenging tone in Potter's voice had gotten into him. He wondered if that was exactly what Potter wanted.

"Of course I can, Potter."

Harry smirked.

"Then you have to sign this paper," he said, taking it from a pile of documents and putting it in front of Draco. "If you sign, you will be in the case, which roughly means you have to keep it a secret and that you have to follow my orders. You still are on time to step back, though."

Draco looked at him. He was positive Potter wanted him in the case. But why? He took the quill Harry was handing him and leaned back on his chair. He read the entire document thoroughly in a few minutes. There was nothing special about that document. It just said what Harry had said along with the possible punishments for failing to comply with the agreement.

He pondered. On the one hand, if he signed, he would know everything about the case and could do something for his mother. But he had to be under Potter's orders almost like one of his little aurors. That was a big handicap. On the other hand, if he didn't sign, he would be out of danger. Maybe he would help a bit when strictly needed, but nothing more. He wouldn't be actively involved in the investigation and he wouldn't have to see Weasley and Potter's faces. Therefore, that would meant he wouldn't protect his mother. And that was his first priority despite of everything else.

"Ok," he said. "I'm in." And he signed.

Draco put down the quill and looked at his signature. Had he done the right thing? He suddenly regretted it a bit. He wasn't sure where all of this was going to take him. And Slytherins liked to control everything in their lives. He thought about his mother again and then he decided it was for the best.

"Well, let's start from the beginning," Hary said, clearing his throat.

Harry told him the story again. He told him about the night of the attack and about the house-elves' disappearances. He told him what they knew about his mother's condition and about Pansy's father. Moreover, he told him about what his mother had written on the floor. At that point, Draco froze, taken aback.

"Death Eaters?"

"Yes, that's the main reason why Kinsley and I thought this case should be confidential now. He also told me it would be useful to have…err… one of them helping us." Harry stuttered. He wasn't sure how Draco would take that.

Draco stared at him in disbelieve.

"So you want me to work for you as a Death Eater?" Did Potter, of all people, have to remind him of that? He wasn't a Death Eater anymore though. Did he have to treat him as one of them?

"Maybe. If the right time comes. But, for now, I just need you to check if something was stolen from your house."

That's what Blaise had said.

"I still don't understand why you chose _me_, Potter" He raised an eyebrow. "We sure don't get along famously."

"There aren't a lot of former Death Eaters out there who would help us willingly, you know?"

"I'm not exactly willing either," he said ironically.

"But you have a reason for being here. You were already involved in the case somehow and I didn't have a wide range of options. And besides, your position and connections in the wizarding community could prove very useful too."

"I was totally against it," Ron spat. He had kept silent for the entire time until now. "And I'm sure as hell Harry is not thrill either."

"Me neither, Weasley. Believe me when I say it's not a pleasure to work with you," he wanted to add a 'weasel', but thought better.

"Why did you agree then?" Weasley crossed his arms. He was pissed off because he had thought the ferret wouldn't have agreed in his life.

"That's none of your business," Draco spat. He was getting angry.

Ron took a step towards him and Draco rose up from his chair, but Nott stopped them.

"Calm down!" He said. "If we are going to work together we need to be civil."

Harry sighed. He was as pissed off as Ron to see Malfoy again, but he could control himself and go along with him for the sake of the investigation. On the other hand, Ron didn't have that self-control. He never did.

"That's right, Nott. Malfoy…" Harry turned to him. "This isn't a pleasure for the three of us, but we will have to try. Ron… That goes for you too." Ron scowled at his friend and then at Malfoy, but he didn't say anything. Daco nodded reluctantly. But still he nodded. He wasn't about to be as childish as the weasel was. "Now, if there isn't anything else, Malfoy, you and Nott are going to Malfoy Mannor now to check if nothing else was stolen. The sooner the better. You may go now."

Draco gave a cold nod and was about to follow Teo when he remembered something.

"Oh, Potter. One last thing," Harry looked at him, expectantly. "I want my mother's ring back."

Harry frowned.

"What are you talking about?"

"My mother's ring. She isn't wearing it and the healers told me she didn't have it when she came to the hospital. So I figured out your lot had taken it."

"Nothing like that," Harry answered. "I'm sure she didn't have a ring when we found her. Maybe she took it off before the incident?"

"That's impossible. She never takes it off whatever she is doing," Draco retorted.

Harry looked at him with a sparkle of realization in his eyes.

"Are you sure about that?"

"Definitly," Draco affirmed, slowly, as he also realized what Harry was thinking.

* * *

><p>Wow, chapter three! I'm putting a lot of effort into this fic. I like it. But it's really hard for me to write in English, although I think I'm not that bad :).<p>

Next chapter we will see Hermione at last! I have already written the beginning of the next chapter. I hope I'll upload it soon. I'm currently doing my exams, though. In fact, tomorrow I have a French exam. Wish me luck! n.n

And please, leave a review! I absolutely want to know what you think about my story. And reviews also cheer me up a lot so I'll probably write faster, more and better. I'm not trying to persuade anyone with that. It is just true and if you are an author you know it. :)

**Thanks to…**

**luna-maga:**gracias por estar siempre apoyándome. No sabes lo feliz que me hacen a mí también tus reviews :D. Tiene que gustarte de verdad si estás haciendo el esfuerzo de leer en inglés ^^. ¿Sabes qué? Creo que yo también te dedicaré la próxima historia en español que haga :D. Besos!

_***+*+Zakuro Pure*+*+ **_


	4. I've seen this, she said

**Disclaimer: the world of Harry Potter belongs to the marvelous J. K. Rowling**

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><p><strong>Chapter Four<strong>

"**I've seen this", she said**

Ron looked from Harry to Draco, still not getting it, while Theo smiled happily because they had found out something useful.

"Then that means…" Theo started.

"¿That means what?" Ron said, anxious.

"That means…" Harry explained "that there's something missing indeed. Narcissa Malfoy's ring is missing."

"Oh," Ron said as he realized it at last. "Why would they want that for, _Malfoy_?" Ron was doing his best not to call him 'ferret', but even saying his name felt like an insult.

"Of course I don't know, _Weasley_. How should I know?" he rolled his eyes.

"Maybe there is something special about that ring?" Theo looked at Malfoy, inquiring.

"What do you know about that ring, Malfoy?" Harry asked, professionally.

Draco thought about it.

"Not much. It's a wedding ring that has been in the Malfoy family for a long, long time. That's all I know."

"Really?" Ron glared at him as if he thought he was hiding something. "Is that all?"

"_Yes, _that's all," he said, stressing his words and raising an eyebrow.

Ron crossed his arms.

"I think you know more than you're letting us know" he accused.

Draco snorted.

"I'm not lying, Weasley, if that's what you mean."

"Oh, really? Say, how can we trust you?"

Draco was about to answered when Harry talked:

"Ron…" he called. "Calm down, ok?"

Ron turned to him, raging.

"No, it's not ok, Harry. How can you trust him?" his ears were red.

"He already signed, Ron. He's in the case now," Harry tried to explain.

"So what?" he spat. "How can you trust that stupid Death Eater ferret?"

Draco suddenly flew into a rage and took out his wand, pointing at Ron.

"It'll be better for you if you don't repeat that ever in your life, you poor weasel."

Ron smirked at him, his face all red.

"Are you going to curse me? An Auror? Do you want to go to Azkaban like your father or what?"

Draco stretched out his arm until the tip of his wand was touching Ron's throat.

"Don't make me do it, Weasley."

Ron chuckled.

"You are a coward, Malfoy. You won't do it."

Malfoy's eyes widen. Hearing the plain true right on his face was painful. He thought he was a coward. He _knew_ he was a coward. He didn't need anyone telling him that. If he wasn't a coward, his mother wouldn't have suffered as much as she had. That's why this time he wanted to act differently.

He frowned and gave Ron the coldest of glares.

"Do you want to bet, _weasel_?" he asked, his silver eyes glaring threateningly. Draco sure wanted to bet on himself.

Ron seemed scared for a moment, but then looked at Draco in defiant.

"Enough you two!" Harry exclaimed, tired. He had thought it could be good for both of them to let off steam a bit, but now it was too much. "Malfoy, lower your wand if you don't want to be arrested right now."

Draco looked at Potter for an instant, and then he lowered his wand. Again he had lost his control.

Ron smirked, smugly.

"I knew it," he said.

Draco scowled at him, his arm itching to point his wand at him again.

"Ron, I'll talk to you later," Harry told him. "And this time, not only as your friend, but also as your superior. I can't tolerate such behavior in one of my aurors." Ron stared at him, shocked, ashamed and angry at the same time because of the scolding. "Malfoy, I'll overlook yours only this time. Don't do this again."

Draco snorted.

"Who do you think you are to tell me what to do?"

"I'm also your superior, remember? It was on the document you signed." Draco froze. That was true. _Shit_. "Now, Malfoy, it would be nice of you if you draw your mother's ring here." He handed him a sheet of paper and a quill. "It'll be easier if all of us know how it looks like. I hope you can remember it."

Draco took the paper and the quill, angrily, and sat down again.

"Of course, Potter," he said, annoyed.

He started to draw the ring. He remembered it very well. Not in vane it had been in his mother's finger all his life.

"You are not that bad at drawing," Theo complimented, leaning over Draco's shoulder.

Draco smiled proudly.

"It's done," he said, handing it to Harry. "It's made of silver and emeralds. And the engravings are flowers, although they are too small to draw them."

Harry took it and looked at it. The picture was good enough to recognize the ring if they saw it. The thing sure was ostentatious. It had bits of precious stones spread all over it and a lot of little engravings, although Draco had drawn them vaguely.

"This will do," Harry assured him. "Now it's time for you to go to Malfoy Mannor," he said to Theo and Draco. "Ron, come with me. We still have things to do."

Both of them strode towards the door and opened it. Teo and Draco followed them up, but they almost crushed into Harry and Ron when they suddenly stopped.

"Harry! Ron!" A female voice called happily.

"Hermione?" Harry asked, surprised.

Granger? Draco froze for a moment and then he leaned behind Harry to see the girl. It had been years since he had seen Granger, but she was almost the same. Almost, for she seemed prettier than before for some reason. Her hair was longer and not that messy anymore, although it was still wild and curly. She was wearing a brown gown that matched her chocolate eyes just perfectly. Her expression, though, was still that of a know-it-all bookworm.

Hermione smiled wide and approached her two best friends to hug them tightly.

"I've missed you a lot." She said.

"We too." Ron answered. "But weren't you supposed to arrive tomorrow?"

"No, I was supposed to start working tomorrow. But I was arriving today." She explained. "Anyway, I wanted to see you so I came."

"You are a bit tanned." Harry noticed. "You are prettier."

Ron nodded, his ears a bit red.

"Oh, thank you." She smiled, proudly. "Luckily, it was sunny." She then looked at them more intensely, her eyes worried. "What about you? Why do you look so serious?"

Draco looked at her, impressed. How did she know? For him, Potter and Weasley looked as plain as always.

"Well, we are kind of in a complicated case." Harry said, looking distressed. "It can't tell you anything. It's confidential."

"Really?" She said as curiosity spread all over her face. "What a pity. I would have helped you."

"Sorry, Hermione. It's impossible." He apologized, wishing he could talk to Hermione about it.

"And to make it worse" Ron said, frowning "we are stuck with the ferret."

Hermione blinked.

"The ferret?"

Draco snorted and that made Hermione noticed him for the first time. She had been too excited to see her friends to notice. She was surprised to see him there. It had been such a long time she thought she wouldn't have to see him again. Wrong. He was right there before her eyes with that sneering expression of his, his smug smile and those cold grey eyes. She couldn't help it, but think he was as handsome as ever. Maybe more than she remembered. She was just being objective as always, though. Too bad his character, his manners, his ideology and _almost everything else_ were terribly wrong.

Draco took a step forward and thought he had managed to leave her with her mouth open for once, but she quickly closed it and glared at him suspiciously.

"Thanks for your _kind_ explanation, weasel." He scowled at him and Ron crossed his arms, pleased with himself. "Long time no see, Granger." He said, his voice clearly saying it could be better not having to see her again.

"Indeed." She said, coldly. "How have you been?"

"Fine." He answered automatically.

She then turned to Theo.

"Hi, Theo." She smiled at him.

Draco raised an eyebrow. Potter and Weasley had done what he was more or less expecting from them when they saw each other again. But he didn't know what to expect from Granger. Maybe an insult, maybe a scolding… But he didn't expect she would ignore him. Well, it wasn't exactly that. She was just behaving as if he was some kind of person she didn't mind at all.

"Hi, Hermione." Theo answered, also smiling. "How was your trip?"

"Really nice. I met a lot of people and went to wonderful places. I tried some elfish food too."

"How was it?" Ron asked, his eyes beaming of curiosity and hunger.

She kept babbling to her friends about her trip while Draco waited, annoyed. Wasn't he supposed to go as fast as he could to the mannor with Theo? He stopped listening at some point until he heard his name again ten minutes later.

"So what is Malfoy doing here?" Hermione asked.

Draco suddenly felt even more ignored than before. She had asked as if he wasn't there. That was like an insult for him. He suddenly realized she was actually insulting him by not minding him at all.

"I'm also working in the case, Granger." He answered before the other three could, his voice annoyed.

She seemed to jump in surprise as if she hadn't expected him to answer. Maybe she had really forgotten he was there. Draco liked that even less. How could someone forget about him like that?

"And why is that?" She turned to him, raising an eyebrow. "It's too odd."

"Are you deaf?" He asked as he saw her forehead frowning, amused. "It's a confidential case, Granger. It means we can't tell you about it." He explained her as if she were a five year old kid.

She frowned even more. Ron murmured something angrily, but neither of them could get it.

"Whatever. As if I would like to be involved in anything with you, Malfoy"

Draco smirked, his respond already ready.

"That could be even more _pleasant_ than you could imagine, Granger."

She snorted and turned her back to him, flushing. Since when did Malfoy make _that_ kind of comments? She had always being too shy for _that_ kind of comments. She always went blank and didn't know how to respond until it was already late. And it didn't help it she thought he was handsome. She heard him chuckle as if he had win something. Hermione felt the rage awakening in her. She took some deep breaths and tried to ignore him. Yes, that would be the best and wisest thing to do.

She heard Ron taking some deep breaths too. It was strange he hadn't snapped yet. He was doing all he could to remain under control. She wondered why, although she didn't want them to start a fight.

"Malfoy, remember what we talked about being civil?" Harry said.

"And I'm being civil." He retorted. "Besides, that was between the three of us and anyone else, right?"

_Oh, so that's why Ron is doing his best_, she thought.

Harry glared at Malfoy. He was starting to lose his patience too and Hermione could see that. If he lost it, then Ron would finally lose it too. She saw suddenly a paper in Harry's trembling hand and, before he could snap and turned the situation into a never ending war between old school enemies, she took it.

"Hermione, what..?" He said, took by surprise.

"What's this?" She said, trying to distract him and everyone else, including herself, to calm down the mood.

But when she saw the drawing, she stared at it in disbelieve. Little engravings and bits of precious stones were drawn neatly on the paper. She gasped.

"I've seen this." She said.

Everybody stopped what they were doing and looked at her, silent. They forgot they were about to fight a moment ago.

"Have you seen that ring?" Harry asked, dumbstruck.

She looked at him, surprised.

"No…" She said. "I mean, it wasn't a ring. I just saw this pattern of gems and engravings. I'm sure it looked like this."

"But we are looking for a ring, Hermione." Ron explained. "It can't be the same."

"Yes, well…" She looked at the drawing more intensely. "Yeah, I can see it's a ring, but I'm sure the pattern is just the same."

"Hermione, what are the engravings?" Theo answered all of a sudden.

She looked at the drawing again.

"That part is in a blur. I can't tell."

"That's why I ask you. Don't you remember what they were?"

She thought about it.

"I don't remember. I only saw it once. But I'm sure it's the same." She kept saying, angry because they didn't seem to believe her. "What is this all about, anyway?"

Draco crossed his arms.

"Again, Granger, it's confidential." Draco said. He wondered why he kept wanting to tease her. Maybe because she always exasperated him whatever she did. Potter and Weasley just made him hate them. But she _exasperated_ him.

She frowned. He hadn't talked once during the entire conversation. And still he had to open his mouth to tease her. Well, she wasn't about to lose her cool.

"_Again_, Malfoy, I'm glad I don't have to work with you."

Before he could respond, Theo cut him off.

"Do you think it is possible, Draco?" He asked him. "To find it somewhere else?"

He shrugged, his respond to her dying in his lips.

"I don't really know. I told you I don't know much about that."

"One way or another, we should check it." Harry reasoned. "Just in case. Hermione, where did you see it?" Harry asked.

She didn't have to think it twice.

"At an elfish village when I was on my trip."

"An… an elfish village?" Harry stuttered.

"Does it exist?" Ron sounded flabbergasted.

"Of course." She and Draco said at the same time, both thinking the same too. _How ignorant could they be?_

She looked at him with astonishment. She hadn't expected he, of all people, knew something about elves. He seemed disgusted for talking at the same times as her.

Harry blinked and Ron frowned.

"It kind of makes sense." Theo commented. "Because of the elves' thing and all."

"What do you mean, Theo?"

Draco coughed, but she was sure she heard him say 'confidential' once more. She glared at him. He was glaring at her too, as if he was challenging her. At first she wanted to be cold and polite to him. But he was making it difficult.

"I guess we'll have to go to that village, then." Harry said.

"Wait…" Hermione tried to say as soon as she heard that, but Harry didn't hear her.

"Draco, you should go too, so you can confirm if it's the same." He then looked from Ron to Theo, as if he were deciding something. It didn't take much time. "Theo will go with you."

Draco rolled his eyes. He hated doing whatever Potter said. Theo nodded.

But Hermione shook her head as if she thought he was doing the wrong thing.

"You can't do that."

"Why not?" Harry looked at her, bewildered.

"Only people who had been invited by the villagers can enter. Otherwise, they won't let you in. They don't trust wizards." She explained.

Harry thought for a moment.

"But you entered."

"I was invited. They like what I think about their rights."

Harry seemed thoughtful again.

"Do you think you will be able to enter again?" He asked.

"They told me I could come back whenever I want. They became very fond of me." She answered, proudly, not quite grasping what Harry was so thoughtful about.

Harry smiled.

"Then, Hermione, I need you in the case now." He seemed happy for finding an excuse to work with Hermione like in the old good times.

"What… what do you mean?" She said, suddenly afraid. She had the feeling she wouldn't like it.

Draco raised his eyebrow. Surely Potter wouldn't even think about it, would he?

Harry took a deep breath. Neither of them would like it, but it was the only way.

"You will go with Malfoy to that elfish village to check if what you saw have anything to do with the ring."

Hermione's eyes widen while Malfoy's arms dropped to his sides, both too stunned to say anything. They looked at each other, thinking the same again.

_Do I really have to work with that insufferable __creature?_

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><p>Yeah, chapter four! I like it. It was difficult to write about Draco and Hermione. I wasn't sure how they would act after such a long time. I figured out Hermione would try to be distant and polite, but that Draco wouldn't let her. Was it alright? Just tell me, please! Review, please :)!<p>

I've noticed this chapter is full of dialogues. There is not a lot of descriptions… Well, just a thought of mine xD.

Next chapter we will see a bit more about Hermione's point of view. That's what I think, but I haven't started to right next chapter yet.

Well, now…

**Thanks too…**

**luna-maga:** lo de los elfos ya saldrá con el tiempo n.n. Todavía falta un poco… creo xD. Espero que te haya gustado la Hermione de este capi :) y su interacción con Draco. Me costó un poco. No sabía cómo hacer que se comportaran después de tanto tiempo. Dime si te parece bien así :D. Me alegra que te guste. Besos!

See you next chapter!  
><strong>*+*+Zakuro Pure*+*+<strong>


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